Our 12 Favorite Jazz Hi Hats - Which Cymbals Are Best For You?

Timestamps:
00:00 - 01:26 Intro
01:27 - 01:49 Meinl Byzance Big Apple Dark 15
01:50 - 02:11 Meinl Foundry Reserve 14
02:12 - 02:32 Paiste Signature Traditionals 14
02:33 - 02:54 Paiste Masters Dark 15
02:55 - 03:16 Sabian HHX Anthology 14
03:17 - 03:37 Sabian HHX Legacy 14
03:38 - 03:59 Zildjian K Con 14
04:00 - 04:21 Zildjian Kerope 15
04:22 - 04:43 Istanbul Agop 30th 15
04:44 - 05:05 Istanbul Agop Mel Lewis 14
05:06 - 05:27 Dream Bliss 15
05:28 - 05:49 Turkish Millennium 14
05:50 - 06:12 Subscribe to the DCP Cymbal Vault Channel!
06:13 - 07:39 Head to Head Comparison

Buy the hats here:
Meinl Byzance Dark Big Apple Dark Hats 15" 994/1159 grams

Meinl Byzance Foundry Reserve Hi Hat Cymbals 14" 990/1165 grams

Paiste Signature Traditionals Medium Light Hi Hat Cymbals 14"

Paiste Masters Dark Hi Hat Cymbals 15"

Sabian HHX Anthology Low Bell Hi Hat Cymbals 14" 914/1310 grams

Sabian HHX Legacy Hi Hat Cymbals 14" 846/1171 grams

Zildjian K Constantinople Hi Hat Cymbals 14"

Zildjian Kerope Hi Hat Cymbals 15" 992/1192 grams

Istanbul Agop 30th Anniversary Hi Hat Cymbals 15" 919/1119 grams

Istanbul Agop Mel Lewis Hi Hat Cymbals 14" 852/990 grams

Dream Bliss Hi Hat - 15

Turkish Millennium Hi Hat Cymbals 14" 926/1182 grams

Snare Drum
Canopus Limited Edition 1ply Soft Maple Snare Drum 14x5.5 Solid White Lacquer

Drum Set
Gretsch Broadkaster 3pc Drum Set 18/12/14 Satin Antique Maple w/Mount

Microphones used to capture the drums:

Bass Drum:

Snare Drum:

Toms:

Overheads:

Room Mics:

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#jazzcymbals #jazzhihats #bestjazzhats

[TomRodb]

Paiste 15” Masters Dark! OMG, just perfect.

[kevinremsen]

As soon as Adam said “big brain” my wife lost it laughing. Maybe this means I can buy more drums soon! Thanks for the help gents!

[petermasalsky]

Came for the hats, stayed for the snare. That is a really, really nice snare. And all of the hi-hats sounded great, but if absolutely forced to make a choice, I'd say the Kerope 15". Great job, everyone.;

[BayouMaccabee]

After all these years of hearing as many hi-hats as I can I still have not been able to find any hi-hats in existence that I like better than a set of 14" Zildjian K Constantinople hi-hats...and this video just proved it to me once again.

[drumrnva]

They're all very nice, but I REALLY like the Dream hats. Great video, y'all.

[dustjacket]

The Mel Lewis line is sublime all around.

[xtime]

A cup of coffee and a new video from DCP, the best way to start my morning, , thank you guys !

[luiszuluaga]

All so sweet. The Paistes definitely cut through more distinctly but still have a nice clean sound.

[mountainhobbit]

I know we all have our favorites and I am not here to argue with anyone on any of that but just to say that my ears and heart just cannot get enough of anything Kerope or Constantinople...AND that snare. ;-)

[lendrums]

Great comparison video! I really liked those Paiste 15” Dark hats! My favored pair for the last 15 or so years has been the 14” Zildjian K Custom Session hi hats. Great all-around cymbals that have worked well for everything.

[blackasthesky]

Man, these 30th anniversary hats... That deep, rich soft sound. Ain't nothing like it, lol.

[nairnodrums]

Those AGOP anniversary hats are the biz. Played a set in a shop and I have to say they are grail hats for me.

[steverok]

The Paiste Signature Traditionals and both Sabian HHX pairs stood out for me. But they all sounded good under a finely skilled pair of hands.

[daltonidaho]

I appreciate you playing the same thing in each sample! Really gives us an idea of the differences. Listening without looking, the Meinl Foundry Reserve and Dream Bliss sounded great to me. But as always, everything sounded good to me 😅

[jrfrondelli]

Ironically, the sound signature and even pitch range of most of them (with the exception of the particularly-throaty Dream Bliss hats) are very similar. All great-sounding, and certainly NOT limited to jazz. Nice video, and the snare is awesome!

[michaeljohnson]

Great video. My ears perked up at the Mel Lewis. 🦊

[beckman]

Ok, I spend a lot of time to hear the differences about these great hihatcymbals.
My absolute favourites are the Paiste Masters.
Dark and crispy tone, wonderful.
Greetings from Germany,
Beckman

[charliecontrino]

Wow! I've always been a Zildjian guy but i really like the Meinl Foundry Reserve.

[brent]

My vote goes to the Z Kerope 15 and the Istanbul 30th Anniversary. Killer hats!

[omarcortes]

The Big Apple and the K Cons were my favs. That snare sounds great too.